A solid state drive (SSD) is a data storage device that uses integrated circuit assemblies as memory to store data persistently. The SSD may be coupled to a host computing system, such as a personal computer or a server, where the host computing system performs input/output (I/O) operations on the SSD, and where the I/O operations may include writing data to the SSD and reading data from the SSD.
When an I/O operation is transmitted from the host computing system to the SSD and the results of the processing of the I/O operation are returned back from the SSD to the host computing system, the total time taken for the roundtrip is referred to as the latency of the I/O operation. In other words, the latency refers to the time interval or delay during which the host computing system is waiting for receiving the results of the I/O operation from the SSD. In certain systems, latency measurement mechanisms are implemented within the host computing system. In such mechanisms, the host computing system measures the latency of the I/O operations sent to the SSD or to other storage devices coupled to the host computing system.